TOULOUSE-LAUTREC HENRI DE: (1864-1901) 'I am as happy as Cinderella who had a very generous Godmother'

TOULOUSE-LAUTREC HENRI DE: (1864-1901) 'I am as happy as Cinderella who had a very generous Godmother'

TOULOUSE-LAUTREC HENRI DE: (1864-1901) French painter and illustrator. A wonderful, early A.L.S., Henry, four pages, 8vo, Paris, 19th January 1873, to his Godmother ('Ma chere marraine'), in French. The nine-year old Toulouse Lautrec writes a charming letter (the feint pencil guidelines still visible in places) thanking his Godmother for her good wishes and gift of money, 'Oh! que j'ai ete content quand maman a ouvert la lettre et qu'elle m'a donne....50 f! Jamais je n'ai recu tant d'argent a la fois! Mille et mille fois merci, merci et encore merci' (Translation: 'Oh! how happy I was when mom opened the letter and gave me....50 f! I have never received so much money at once! A thousand and a thousand thanks, thank you and thank you again'), further remarking 'Je suis aussi heureux que Cendrillon qui avait une marraine tres-genereuse. Nous avons ete voir cette belle histoire, jouee par des poupees, au theatre Miniature' (Translation: 'I am as happy as Cinderella who had a very generous Godmother. We went to see this beautiful story, played out by dolls, at the Miniature Theatre') and also referring to his cousin who is staying at the Hotel Perey, 'Elle a 15 ans, mais elle s'amuse avec moi' (Translation: 'She's 15 but she has fun with me') before concluding in an affectionate and jovial manner, 'Adieu ma chere petite marraine.....Vous pensez bien que ma plus grosse caresse est pour vous......Je vous chargerais bien d'embrasser Mr. l'abbe, mais vous ne le feriez pas' (Translation: 'Farewell my dear little Godmother.......You can well imagine that my biggest caress is for you......I would charge you to kiss the abbot, but you would not do it'). A letter of appealing content. A few extremely small holes, only very slightly affecting a few words of text, and a couple of small, neat splits to the edges of folds (neatly repaired with clear tape). About VG

Louise Tapie de Celeyran (1815-1905) Godmother of Toulouse-Lautrec, who was also his maternal grandmother and the sister of his paternal grandmother.